What to do when jobs get slow?

As a writer who has done almost exclusively freelance work thus far, what is some advice that could be given for when the jobs are coming in slowly.
I have done freelance at a high level, covering the NBA, the Olympics, Indy Car races, and also at a high school and college level as well.

Over the past 6 months, I have received hardly any freelance jobs, as I know can be normal for freelancers.

The problem is, however, that I do not have a journalism degree, so whenever I am interested in a full time writing job, that usually counts me out.

Just curious: Are you waiting for jobs to come to you, or are you actively seeking out freelance jobs? There are lots of sites -- including SportsJournalists.com, and some are better/more legit than others -- that list freelance gigs that are available. And look outside your area of expertise, jobs that are not sports-related. One of the best freelance stories I've ever done was for an academic magazine. It was outside of my area, and it was a lot of work, but it certainly looks good in my portfolio now.

If you have good clips, the degree won't matter at smaller papers. Most require some kind of college degree, but if you've been in newspapers for years, they won't care what it's in. Mine's in political science, for crying out loud.

If you have good clips, the degree won't matter at smaller papers. Most require some kind of college degree, but if you've been in newspapers for years, they won't care what it's in. Mine's in political science, for crying out loud.